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Bears at Enstone Show spark animal rights protest

AN organiser of today's Enstone Show has been deluged with emails protesting against an appearance by bear cubs.

Animal Defenders International (ADI) said three European brown bear cubs should not be involved in the event, saying it was “no fun for animals like bears”.

An organiser of the show, Kate Farquhar-Thomson, said she had received some 600 emails about the issue after ADI publicised the issue among its supporters.

ADI spokeswoman Fleur Dawes said: “The initial complaint came from a member of the public and we then alerted people through our Facebook group.”

ADI posted a message urging people to email Mrs Farquhar-Thomson on its Facebook page, which has 140,251 “likes”.

The show takes place at the village's sports and social club, at the junction of Charlbury Road and Cox's Lane, from 1pm to 5pm.

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Animal Defenders International (ADI) is not an animal-welfare group but an animal-rights group - these two things are very different. They campaign against all forms of animals use including zoos and animals in medical research; they were founded off the back of an anti vivisection group The National Anti-Vivisection Society (NAVS).

The fact that they say they were reacting to a complaint from a member of the public is risible as they actively look out for events such as animals being used in the public arena. Moreover, they have made concerted attacks on Amazing Animals the company supplying the bear cubs.

Moreover, a recent statement from ADI Facebook pages regarding Amazing Animals is without foundation and really does approach libel:

"The bear cub is being supplied by Amazing Animals, based in the area and which is a major supplier of animals for television, advertising and films. ADI has previously gone behind-the-scenes at the company and revealed brutal training techniques, animals exhibiting unnatural and repetitive behaviours, and barren conditions."

I have a professional working knowledge of Amazing Animals and they have a very good record for animal care and training. Their facilities near Oxford are of a high quality and fully licensed and inspected by the appropriate authorities. The animal accommodation they provide is of a standard you would expect to see in a well run zoo; one of their veterinary consultants is The International Zoo Veterinary Group (IZVG)- a world leader in zoo animal medicine. In my experience of IZVG it would be highly unlikely they would associate themselves with a company that did not take animal-welfare seriously.

Animal Defenders International (ADI) is not an animal-welfare group but an animal-rights group - these two things are very different. They campaign against all forms of animals use including zoos and animals in medical research; they were founded off the back of an anti vivisection group The National Anti-Vivisection Society (NAVS).
The fact that they say they were reacting to a complaint from a member of the public is risible as they actively look out for events such as animals being used in the public arena. Moreover, they have made concerted attacks on Amazing Animals the company supplying the bear cubs.
Moreover, a recent statement from ADI Facebook pages regarding Amazing Animals is without foundation and really does approach libel:
"The bear cub is being supplied by Amazing Animals, based in the area and which is a major supplier of animals for television, advertising and films. ADI has previously gone behind-the-scenes at the company and revealed brutal training techniques, animals exhibiting unnatural and repetitive behaviours, and barren conditions."
I have a professional working knowledge of Amazing Animals and they have a very good record for animal care and training. Their facilities near Oxford are of a high quality and fully licensed and inspected by the appropriate authorities. The animal accommodation they provide is of a standard you would expect to see in a well run zoo; one of their veterinary consultants is The International Zoo Veterinary Group (IZVG)- a world leader in zoo animal medicine. In my experience of IZVG it would be highly unlikely they would associate themselves with a company that did not take animal-welfare seriously.jdd